


Fireproof

by aeronaut



Category: Promare (2019)
Genre: Fluff, Light Angst, M/M, One Shot, Post-Canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-18
Updated: 2021-03-18
Packaged: 2021-03-27 02:00:31
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,026
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30115416
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aeronaut/pseuds/aeronaut
Summary: Post-movie canon, Lio is no longer a Burnished, but he keeps forgetting he's no longer immune to heat and fire. Small oneshot.
Relationships: Lio Fotia/Galo Thymos
Kudos: 39





	Fireproof

“DAMNIT!!!”

Galo jolted up from his nap at the yell, followed by the clatter of falling objects in the firehouse kitchen. He ran in to find the oven open, tray and pizza overturned on the floor, and Lio hissing in pain, palm and fingers of his right hand bright red. The pieces were easy to put together for Galo. Lio wasn’t a Burnished anymore, but when he was on autopilot, it was easy to forget. Galo sighed, and wiped the sleep from his eyes. “Come on, Lio, again?!?” 

“Just get the ointment, will you?” Lio turned on the sink faucet, and winced as he ran his hand under the cool water. He breathed deep, doing his best to ignore the throbbing from his burn, letting his frustration and adrenaline settle back down. “…Sorry about dinner.”

Galo looked down at the streak of marinara across the floor. “Eh, don’t worry about it.” It was tragic… but not worth making a fuss over right now. Galo scooped as much of the pizza as he could back onto the tray, frowning in thought. “I can fix this… it’s a mess, but I bet I can fold it into some kind of makeshift calzone.”

“Galo, that’s disgusting, it was face down on the floor!”

“So what? Five second rule.” Galo started scooping the loose toppings into the center and gingerly folded it over in half.

Lio just stood there, cold water running over his burn, any pain temporarily overridden by his revulsion. “…I’ll heat up some ramen instead.”

“Suit yourself.” Galo took a huge bite of the ‘calzone’ in full defiance of Lio’s judgment.

“…Galo…”

“Mmmfph?” (Yeah?)

“Ointment?”

Galo’s eyes shot open. “MMM! MMMPH!” (Right! Sorry!) Galo quickly swallowed and darted downstairs to the locker room.

The ointment was already out on the counter, from last time. The water at the station ran hot, and Lio had stepped into the shower while it was going full blast. Varys told him later that Lio had “made a noise like he saw a ghost, or got stabbed, or maybe got stabbed by a ghost?" Galo chuckled, remembering the description, but then stopped and grimaced, thinking about the red splotches that were left all across Lio's chest. None of these incidents had hurt Lio too badly, but the pattern of injury was a constant source of distress for Galo. He frowned as he grabbed the bottle of ointment off the counter, along with some bandages and aspirin, and rushed back upstairs. Lio was still there, and he smiled softly as he saw the urgency in Galo’s eyes as he returned.

“Thanks.”

“Yeah, no problem.” Galo passed over the bottle and the bandages, and Lio sat down to start tending to his hand. Lio seemed fine, but Galo couldn’t shake his worry.

“Lio, are you sure you’re okay?”

“What, you think I’d be working here if I couldn’t handle a few little burns?

“It’s not that. You know what I’m talking about.”

Lio huffed. “I told you before, and Ignis, and everyone, being fireproof has been second nature for me for most of my life. I’ll adjust eventually.”

“You keep burning your tongue because you drink your coffee as soon as you get it…”

“I know, Galo.”

“And that time we went to the spa you nearly fainted from heat exhaustion…”

“Yeah, I remember. I was stubborn. I told you, it won’t happen again.”

“And you keep forgetting to put on sunscreen…”

Lio looked a bit embarrassed at that one. ”Well, a sunburn is a different kind of burn. That’s actually happened to me before.”

“Oh. Wait, really?” 

“Yeah. A sunburn isn’t caused by heat, it’s UV radiation.”

“Huh.” Galo paused for a second.

“…”

“And when we were camping you reached bare-handed into the fire to shift the logs…”

“Galo, I know!!!”

Galo heard Lio’s clear annoyance; more at having to explain himself  _ again _ than at any of his accidents. Galo frowned, and sheepishly scratched the back of his head.

“Sorry, Lio. …I just don’t want you to actually hurt yourself. You’re around towering infernos all the time. This job is dangerous.”

Lio sighed. “I know.” Lio looked back up at Galo, and passed back the bottle of ointment. “Don’t worry about me though. It’s easy to remember fire is dangerous when it’s an entire building. I can feel the heat all around me. Before, I barely registered it.”

Galo rubbed his chin as Lio stared off into the distance. Lio looked contemplative whenever he talked about ‘before’… his past as leader of Mad Burnish. Galo knew Lio had complicated feelings about that time, but was hard for Galo to make sense of. He’d figured there would be nothing worth looking back on in a time when Lio and his community were treated like monsters. But, there was so much he didn’t really understand about any of the ex-Burnished.

Galo sat down next to Lio, matching Lio’s thoughtful stare into nothing. “Hey, Lio.”

“Yeah?”

“Do you miss them? The Promare?”

Lio blinked in surprise, unprepared for the question. “Well… it’s different. Until that day, I didn’t know what the Promare were. It was just who I was. And I’m still me now that they’re gone; I just don’t feel the flames in the way I used to. I really haven’t changed much at all. But…” Lio’s gaze became distant again, thinking of the voices that used to share his consciousness. “It’s lonely sometimes.”

“I’m sorry.” Galo reached across Lio’s back to put his hand on Lio’s shoulder. “…I don’t think I can understand what that’s like.” Galo was silent for a few seconds, thinking; Lio wasn’t sure he’d seen Galo this deep in thought about anything.

“Galo…”

Galo perked up at Lio’s voice, looking over to him and smiling wide. “But for what it’s worth, you don’t need them to be strong or anything. You’re doing a great job on our team! And I’m glad you aren’t a firebug anymore.”

Lio smiled at Galo’s confident reassurance, and leaned into him, thankful he had gained much more than he had lost. “Thanks, Galo. I’ll be okay. But… it was handy not to need oven mitts.”


End file.
